Book Expo America from the agent side

June 5th to 7th is Book Expo America in New York City where authors sign books, publishers promote their lists, industry members attend seminars, and those in the rights business (like agents) meet scouts, editors and sub agents to sell rights to their clients’ work.

BEA is not a major rights fair, that’s what London Book Fair and Frankfurt Book Fair are for, but it’s a time when everyone is in one place.

Next week I’ll be meeting with editors at their offices, at BEA, and going out for coffee to catch up on what’s new with them and their lists. I’ll pitch new client material, meet with my clients’ editors, and meet editors I haven’t been acquainted with yet to build my network. I have 40 meetings planned in 4 days. 

Digital strategy, do you have one?

An agent’s job is changing as rapidly as the publishing industry itself. We’re carving out new territory for our authors and ourselves. The support we give our authors is more complex in recent times and if you didn’t think you needed an agent before you certainly need one now to help you with your online presence, digital strategy for ebooks and otherwise, negotiate tumultuous and evolving contracts, and all the traditional publishing problem solving.

With the limitless abilities to upload content and provide your readers with entertainment I caution against thoughtlessly self publishing. Even while you are pursing a traditional publishing deal and think that will be your main market your self published works reflect on your author brand more than you know.

It is all too easy, and unintentional, to confuse readers and the marketplace with a website that is ineffective as a platform, and self published work that doesn’t support your growing brand. Things like consistent visual identifiers between your blog, social media, website and cover images are the easiest way to create a brand. This being colour, logos, cover images, tag lines and more.

Think of your website as a hub for the spokes of your brand.

SiWC 2012

I’ll be attending the Surrey International Writers’ Conference this year!

The SiWC is a not for profit organization that hosts one of the best and most attended North American writers’ conference. There is a great list of editors and agents taking pitches, sitting on panels, and giving talks.

Learn about the conference here.

And see my speakers page here.

Hope to see some of you there…

Social media style, it says a lot about you

Are you an observer or a networker? A curator of content or a tastemaker?

Who you are online is part of your brand. The tweets you send out. The Facebook updates you post. All of these attract followers and sometimes your brand is built around you without you knowing.

Think about it: you’re just being you online, but the people that follow your thoughts are attaching themselves to you and these are the people you are projecting your message to when it comes time to promote your book. On Twitter the people you follow aren’t necessarily the people that follow you–so when you’re trying to grow online remember to think about your following and those that are interested in your message. These are the people that are going to buy your book if you market it correctly to them.

The more information you know about your Twitter followers and Facebook friends (i.e. by engaging with them!) the better you can pitch your message and make it successful (i.e. at book promotion time). People want authentic engagement, so bring your followers the relationship building experience and the product they can care about (and buy!).

Yes, agents love debuts!

Don’t get down if you’re querying with a debut. Agents love finding and working with undiscovered gems.

Yes, a fantastic track record is great, but an inconsistent track record can muddle editors’ decisions, while debuts have such fresh market appeal. A debut has potential you can carve out of it and start a new brand. It’s exciting for authors, agents and editors.

Yes, debuts are the most difficult to query an agent with, but have faith if you have a fresh concept and terrific writing–you will be found.

Yes, you have a lot against you in order to stand out from the pack, but a lot of the ‘big books’ from the past couple years have been stand out debuts that have found their way.

Yes, you will get shot down by beta readers and some agents if the concept is new and no one knows what to do with it. But rest assured that someone recognize this. Agents and editors often pass on good writing only because they don’t think they’re the person to bring it to the market and know what to do with it–consider this a favour because you’re waiting for the team that does believe.

Yes, larger agencies have full lists and take longer to get back to you. So, why not try agents that are building their list? They’ll get back to you quicker and have more time to devote to your manuscript and you if they take you on.

Yes, the market is tough right now and it’s hard for anyone to get a deal, published authors included, but it’s times like this that electrifying debuts are looked upon to breathe new life.

Updated: What I’m looking for

Many frequent visitors to this blog know about what I’m looking for in queries and new projects. Here is an updated list of things I’m dying to see come in to me:

• Upmarket women’s fiction (high stakes, family issues, love, troubled heart, travel) with a new fresh concept
• Small town romance
• Historical fiction (i.e. The Tudor period, Regency, in the tradition of Philippa Gregory)
• Platform based non-fiction: must have a demonstrable expertise and know your quantifiable market
• Pop science and pop psychology proposals (i.e. brands, consumer behaviour, creativity, business with a commercial spin)
• Gritty contemporary YA
• High concept YA with a fresh new concept that hasn’t been done (i.e. light fantasy)
• High concept picture books that stand out from the pack

New Client: Caitlin Rantala

I’m delighted to share a new author that I have recently begun to represent: Caitlin Rantala.

She wrote a imaginative YA Fantasy, SIREN, that caught my eye. Here’s a bit about the book! I call it THE VOICE meets SNOW WHITE.

Eastland is inhabited by sirens – people with mesmerizing voices worn proudly around their necks in small colorful glass vials. Once a Kingdom full of magic, Eastland is slowly losing itself. The only thing spectacular anyone has left is their song. The better one’s voice, the better one’s social standing in the Kingdom. In fact, even the Queen of Eastland is chosen on her vocals during a ceremony called The Choosing.

Sawyer Sweetin is a nobody in Eastland, but she has a rare gifted talent, one that could easily steal the crown if the whole kingdom were to hear her. Tired of being ignored, Sawyer is determined to win the hearts of her homeland, finally being allowed to come into her own and return the kingdom back to its magic origins. But Sawyer has yet to learn that sometimes the things you want in life, don’t always come to you in the way that you’d hoped.